×

Display having redundant segments

  • US 5,559,528 A
  • Filed: 09/21/1993
  • Issued: 09/24/1996
  • Est. Priority Date: 09/21/1993
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
Patent Images

1. A display circuit, comprising:

  • (a) a substrate on which is defined a circuit of conducting traces;

    (b) a plurality of segments electrically coupled to the conducting traces and configured in a predefined pattern on said substrate, at least some of the segments being configured in segment pairs, each segment pair including a first and a second segment that are proximate to each other and extend in a common direction, but are spaced apart, each segment pair comprising a portion of at least one icon character;

    (c) segment control means, coupled to the segments, for causing selected ones of said segments to be visually perceptible by simultaneously energizing each first segment in a segment pair whenever each second segment in a segment pair is energized, said selected ones of the segments thereby visually representing a desired icon character; and

    (d) whereby a defective segment pair that includes a failed segment and an operating segment continues to accurately represent a part of the desired icon character, said failed segment providing a visual warning that one of the first and the second segments comprising that defective segment pair has failed by appearing visually different than the operating segment of that defective segment pair.

View all claims
  • 2 Assignments
Timeline View
Assignment View
    ×
    ×